You Are In Charge of Your Own Happiness

I feel like when it comes to Smashbox, I've always kinda looked over their products. Not intentionally, I knew they had good products, I just never got into them so much. They are consistent. They are professional grade. They're a huge brand. In short they're almost intimidating. Not in a bad way though. I feel like for their price point, they're professional packaging that has no bells and whistles because it doesn't need it, and because they're aren't named as much as say Make Up For Ever or NARS within the beauty influencer and youtuber world, that's what makes them intimidating in a way. Basically, you know its probably gonna be good but are you sure you know what to do with it?? Cause let's face it unless we've seen 4,000 youtubers talk about 3 times a piece and use it, then we aren't sure if we're gonna use it correctly. (That part was a joke, relax) None the less, some of their products you don't hear much about.

Now some products you do. Their PhotoFinish primer the clear one, that's a cult favorite. Personally I like the Pore Minimizing (purple one) better. They have a whole range of those and they're all really good. The BB Cream is also a cult favorite. For yearssssss. At one point I'm pretty sure everyone in the world had tried it. Maybe not everyone but a lot. More recently they have had a lot of popular success with their Be Legendary liquid lipsticks which I must say are very good. I really enjoy them. Around Christmas they released several palettes for $29 a piece, which is very inexpensive for this brand, they have 6 colors in them and from what I can tell very consistent in quality. Although I've not seen as many influencers or youtubers talk about them, they seemed to be very popular with regular customers. I must say I find them beautiful, especially Smokey and Ablaze.

Moving onto the products I would like to talk about, these are newer and not much has been said as of yet about them that I have seen. I actually have only seen one talked about so far and it was only on Wane Goss' instagram post. So what I have here is:

Pretty sure all of these are new I know the primer and the foundation are, can't be sure about the under eye brightener though, I don't think it really is. It looks like they've released a highlighting pen style called the Halo Wand with different shades that seems to be similar but much bigger than the under eye brightener, and it's actually a highlighter pen. The reason I make mention of this is because I don't care for the under eye brightener and to me with highlighting pens they're so subtle that many people use them under their eyes so perhaps that would work more so than this. Either way I wouldn't get the under eye brightener. I just wouldn't, it's too watery, it doesn't brighten and all I can see is that is has a bit of glitter. However that is my only fail product from them here and it wasn't a major loss.

What I want to talk to you about the most is the Radiance Primer. This is not something I really suggest for very oily skin because of the fact that it is a moisturizing primer, thanks to the Hyaluronic Acid. Now, if you are determined to try it then perhaps use it in place of your moisturizer although I don't really recommend you do that if you're going to lose out of some skin benefits (aside from hydration) that a moisturizer provides you with, that this does not. Don't compromise your skin care for a subtle, yet beautiful glow. You can accomplish a glow with other things if you're skin is more oily and can't handle this primer. For those of you that are going to give it a go I have a few thoughts on it. First of all, as of right now this can only be purchased on Smashbox.com. It is not in Sephora or Ulta stores or on their websites as of yet. I do think it will be eventually. So don't go scouring for it, it's only on Smashbox website. This is a peachy/bronze tinted primer but don't let that scare you if you are lighter in skin tone. I'm very pale and I still use this and enjoy it immensely. This is a golden bronzey color because it mimic "golden hour lighting". Which is essentially the one part of the day where the lighting is absolutely perfect for photos because the skin looks radiant and glowy against the golden and amber colors of the sun, but it is also gone super quickly. It's usually the first hour or the last hour of sunlight in a day, more commonly associated with the closest the sun gets to the horizon, so either sun rise or sunset. You'll hear in professional photography, or photography tips in general that time of day is super important. So what this product does is mimic the glow the actual "golden hour" would give your skin. So that it glows that way all the time. That glow comes from "Micro-fine amber & bronze pearls that create a warm glow" which in turn gives you the subtle golden tint of the product. Along with Hyaluronic Acid this also is packed with Shea Butter for all day moisture. Also it has "4K, high-definition spheres blur imperfections". If you're wondering what 4K means, it's basically better than HD. There are now cameras out that film in 4K to give you the most high definition of an image possible. As far as the claims of this product. I feel like they're true. I've used this everyday since I've got it, I apply it with a sponge everywhere except my t-zone area where I tend to get shiny at the end of the day. In which I use a mattifying primer in that area actually. This can be worn alone for a glow to the skin, under foundation as a back light effect or glow from within look, and on top of foundation on the cheek bones for extra luminosity because it is very luminous. It's not like a strobing cream or anything but you can't have crushed pearls and it not be luminous, you know? This is $39 for 1 oz. I personally feel like it's worth it. Especially if you have more dry skin. I believe the blurring claims are true. You don't need a lot of product either so I think they did a fantastic job with this. I don't feel like my skin has a golden or amber tint by any means it just has a nice glow to it that looks natural.

I do want to give you the ingredient deck. I'm trying to do that in my reviews more because it's useful to know so this is from the product page on their website:

Please be aware that ingredient lists may change or vary from time to time. Please refer to the ingredient list on the product package you receive for the most up to date list of ingredients."

Moving on to the StudioSkin 15 hr Wear Hydrating Foundation. I thought I would hate this. I actually swatched it in store at Ulta, and was like "no" because it didn't dry down as quickly as other foundations so thus I thought it would stay "tacky" feeling for a while and I didn't like that. My friend then purchased it who has oily skin and told me that she loved it. So when she said that I was super intrigued because this is a hydrating foundation and most oily skin types steer clear from that. So I bought it online without swatching it again because I didn't want that to make my decision. When I got it I put it on the back of my hand and really looked at it. It was very luminous and then after about maybe 1 minute or less it had dried down to a satin/matte finish. I was absolutely shocked. It didn't oxidize. The color was dead on and you honestly couldn't tell I had foundation on my hand, my skin looked photo-shopped people! So I was super stoked for that. I tried it the next day with the Radiance Primer and I've loved it ever since. It's not heavy but I feel comfortable saying it's right at full coverage and even buildable on that. It's definitely more than a medium coverage, I think, although it isn't going to mask a tattoo or anything. As far as hiding blemishes and discoloration, I feel like it does that very well. I have minor redness and very few blemishes, if any at times, so I'm easy to please with the coverage aspect of foundations. I feel like this could be a foundation for every skin type though and I think that's truly amazing. I've never seen anything like it. It is super hydrating when it first goes on and then it dries to a beautiful satiny/matte/ but natural finish that looks like perfect skin. I full blown believe in this product kids! It's not as full coverage as Milani Conceal and Perfect but also doesn't look as cakey or show texture as that, nor is it as heavy. It's not as matte as Marc Jacobs ReMarcable foundation but again it doesn't show texture or dry patches like that one either. It's not a dewy foundation once it's dried down. I feel like it's a dream in a bottle and I full out bought this so I'm not sponsored. Pretty sure Smashbox hasn't ever read my blog or anything. I just really really love it and I don't know why more people haven't tried it or realized how good it is and I'm afraid it's because they're not giving it a legit try. This is $42 for 1 fl oz and they have 22 shades. As with most of their Photo themed products this is tested under different lights and photography labs. They are the "only brand with a Flashbox Photography Lab" where they can test the consistency of their shades in different lighting. Not just photography flashes but different natural light as well since light changes as the hours go on throughout the day. This is available at Sephora and Ulta as well as the Smashbox website.

Here is the ingredient deck and there is a seperate one for Canada apparently:

So that's that. Those are my thoughts. We had one miss but that's okay because the other two products more than made up for it. I truly underestimated Smashbox with these products and didn't believe they were going to live up to the claims or perform as well as they did and they blew me away so, I'm sorry Smashbox for underestimating you. lol

In both pictures below I'm wearing the primer under the foundation. The under eye brightener I just mixed in with my concealer to brighten it up. The 2nd picture I had been wearing the primer and foundation for about 6 hours or so.

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Erin

I'm a makeup and skincare lover. I have always enjoyed creating looks but I love to help people with product knowledge and application even more. I've been able to do these things because God has seen fit to bless me with the opportunity.